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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
National
Martin Belam

Prince Louis once again in the limelight with animated response to coronation

Prince Louis (centre) watches the Red Arrow flypast from the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
Prince Louis (centre) watches the Red Arrow flypast from the balcony of Buckingham Palace. Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

Prince Louis, the youngest child of the Prince and Princess of Wales, carried on his track record of being a centre of attention at major events, where he often delights royal fans by acting like a small human being rather than the people around him, who have been meticulously drilled in protocol and etiquette throughout their lives.

A long wait for a two-hour church service to start would test the patience of most of us, and at the coronation of King Charles III, five-year-old Louis was already spotted yawning before he had entered the abbey.

Prince Louis yawning before the day’s ceremony had begun.
Prince Louis yawning before the day’s ceremony had begun. Photograph: Mark Cuthbert/UK Press/Getty Images

Prince Louis did not sit with his family for the whole of Saturday’s religious ceremony. He did not attend the funeral of the late Queen, presumably on the grounds that it would be too long for a child of his age, and him taking a break from the events in Westminster Abbey on Saturday was planned.

Kate, Princess of Wales, right, Princess Charlotte, left, and Prince Louis, centre, attending the coronation.
Kate, Princess of Wales, right, Princess Charlotte, left, and Prince Louis, centre, attending the coronation. Photograph: Aaron Chown/AP

Yawning in church is something surely every adult has done, let alone a child.

Adverse weather conditions meant the flypast was downscaled from a planned 60 or so planes to a few helicopters and the Red Arrows, which meant there was not a repeat of Louis’ viral appearance last year, with him cupping his hands over his ears and screaming as planes roared overhead while standing next to his great-grandmother, the late Queen Elizabeth II.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Louis watch a flypast from the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Louis watch a flypast from the balcony of Buckingham Palace. Photograph: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

That didn’t mean he was expressionless this time – showing some impatience waiting for the planes to arrive.

Prince Louis waiting for the RAF flypast.
Prince Louis waiting for the RAF flypast. Photograph: Leon Neal/AFP/Getty Images

His balcony waving style was also definitely not the standard royal protocol.

Louis remains fourth in line to the throne, but will only end up king if both his elder siblings remain childfree as adults and die before him.

Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis sit in a coach following the coronation.
Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis sit in a coach following the coronation. Photograph: WPA/Getty Images

That suggests he has many more royal engagements ahead of him where he is on the periphery, but very much in the public eye.

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